Information processing apparatus, storage medium, and information processing system

ABSTRACT

An information processing apparatus connectable to one or more devices via a network. The apparatus includes a measuring unit measuring an inclination of the apparatus; a determining unit determining whether the inclination of the apparatus relative to a given surface of one of the one or more devices is within a predetermined inclination range; a receiving unit that receives radio waves; an obtaining unit obtaining identification information from the radio waves; a radio wave strength measuring unit measuring strength of the radio waves; a selection unit determining whether to select a given one of the one or more devices based on the strength of the radio waves; and a connection unit connecting the information processing apparatus to one of the one or more devices selected by the selection unit and for which the inclination of the apparatus is within the predetermined inclination range.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/593,387, filed Oct. 4, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/629,188, filed Jun. 21, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No.10,484,570 issued Nov. 19, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/052,072, filed Feb. 24, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No.9,729,736 issued Aug. 8, 2017, which claims the benefit of JapanesePriority Patent Application No. 2015-036830 filed Feb. 26, 2015, andJapanese Priority Patent Application No. 2016-014423, filed Jan. 28,2016, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, astorage medium, and an information processing system.

2. Description of the Related Art

When connecting to an image forming device, an information processingapparatus such as a radio communication terminal obtains connectioninformation via a first radio communication method and is connected viaa second radio communication method, using the connection information.

There is a technique of standing by without initiating image formationbased on print data until detecting that a mobile terminal that willtransmit the print data enters a predetermined area and, upon detectingthe entering of the predetermined area, releasing the stand-by state(see Patent Document 1, for example).

An information processing apparatus such as a radio communicationterminal receives signals transmitted from an image processing devicevia radio communication and, if received signal strength of the signalsbecomes a predetermined threshold or more, the information processingapparatus is connected to the image processing device based on thereceived signals.

However, if a plurality of image processing devices are disposed, theinformation processing apparatus may accidentally measure receivedsignal strength of signals transmitted via radio communication by one ofthe image processing devices which is adjacent to another imageprocessing device in front of the information processing apparatus. Ifthe received signal strength is higher than a predetermined threshold,the information processing apparatus may be connected to the imageprocessing device which is different and adjacent to the imageprocessing device to which a job is to be sent.

Further, an information processing apparatus such as a radiocommunication terminal may be left in proximity to an image processingdevice and accidentally measure signals transmitted via radiocommunication from the image processing device. If received signalstrength of the signals is higher than a predetermined threshold, theinformation processing apparatus may communicate with the imageprocessing device and send a job against the will of a user.

-   [Patent Document 1] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No.    2008-17381

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of at least one embodiment of the present invention toprovide an information processing system in which when connecting to animage processing device, an information processing apparatus obtainsconnection information via radio communication and is connected, usingthe connection information. Even if a plurality of image processingdevices are disposed, connection information is obtained via radiocommunication from a desired one of the image processing devices.

In an embodiment, an information processing apparatus connectable to oneor more devices via a network is provided. The information processingapparatus includes a measuring unit that measures an inclination of theinformation processing apparatus; a determining unit that determineswhether the inclination of the information processing apparatus relativeto a given surface of one of the one or more devices is within apredetermined inclination range; a receiving unit that receives aplurality of radio waves output by each of the one or more devices; anobtaining unit that obtains identification information from each of theradio waves received by the receiving unit, the identificationinformation being unique to a respective one of the one or more devices;a radio wave strength measuring unit that measures strength of the radiowaves received by the receiving unit; a selection unit that determineswhether to select a given one of the one or more devices based on thestrength of the radio waves having the identification information of thegiven one of the one or more devices; and a connection unit thatconnects the information processing apparatus to one of the one or moredevices that is selected by the selection unit and for which theinclination of the information processing apparatus is within thepredetermined inclination range.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other objects and further features of embodiments will become apparentfrom the following detailed description when read in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an image processingsystem according to embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of an imageprocessing device according to the embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of an operation unit ofan image processing device according to the embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of an operationunit of an image processing device according to the embodiments;

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of an operation unit of an imageprocessing device according to the embodiments;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of a radiocommunication terminal according to the embodiments;

FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram of a radio communication terminalaccording to the embodiments;

FIG. 8 is a graph showing a temporal change (1) of received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets received by a radiocommunication terminal;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation of a radio communicationterminal according to the embodiments;

FIG. 10 is a functional block diagram of a radio communication terminalaccording to a first embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing acceleration measured in a radiocommunication terminal;

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an inclination of a radio communicationterminal;

FIG. 13 is a graph showing a temporal change (2) of received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets received by a radiocommunication terminal;

FIG. 14 is a graph showing a temporal change (3) of received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets received by a radiocommunication terminal;

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an operation of a radio communicationterminal according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 16 is a functional block diagram of a radio communication terminalaccording to a second embodiment;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an operation of a radio communicationterminal according to the second embodiment;

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a search screen displayed on a radiocommunication terminal according to the second embodiment;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an operation of a radio communicationterminal according to the second embodiment; and

FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating a search screen displayed on a radiocommunication terminal according to the second embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the following, an embodiment to implement the present invention isdescribed based on examples below while referring to the drawings. Theexamples described below are used only for exemplification, and theembodiment to which the present invention is applied is not limited tothe examples below. In all the drawings describing the examples, thesame reference numerals are used for elements having the same functionand a repetition of description will be avoided.

<Outline>

<Image Processing System>

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an image processingsystem according to the embodiments. The image processing systemincludes an image processing device 100 and a radio communicationterminal 200.

An image forming device such as a multifunction peripheral or a printermay be applied to the image processing device 100. The image processingdevice 100 performs an image process depending on a job from an externalradio communication terminal 200 or the like, the job requesting theimage process such as printing or scanning. The image processing device100 includes a first radio communication unit and a second radiocommunication unit. The image processing device 100 is directlyconnected to the radio communication terminal 200 by the first radiocommunication unit and is connected to the radio communication terminal200 by the second radio communication unit via a wireless access point300.

A smartphone, a tablet terminal, or the like may be applied to the radiocommunication terminal 200. The radio communication terminal 200includes a first radio communication unit and a second radiocommunication unit. The radio communication terminal 200 is directlyconnected to the image processing device 100 by the first radiocommunication unit and is connected to the image processing device 100by the second radio communication unit via the wireless access point300. It is possible to use an NFC reader/writer instead of the firstradio communication unit.

The wireless access point 300 builds a communication path between theimage processing device 100 and the radio communication terminal 200.The wireless access point 300 is connected to a Local Area Network (LAN)50 such as Ethernet (registered trademark) and communicates with theradio communication terminal 200 in accordance with a standard of thewireless LAN such as IEEE 802.11. Instead of the wireless access point300, the image processing device 100 may include a Wi-Fi module thatoperates in an infrastructure mode or a Wi-Fi direct module capable ofbeing directly connected to the radio communication terminal 200 andperforming communication. In this case, the radio communication terminal200 can be connected to the image processing device 100 without thewireless access point 300 and perform communication, so that it ispossible to eliminate the wireless access point 300.

<Image Processing Device 100>

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of the imageprocessing device 100 according to the embodiments.

The image processing device 100 includes a controller 102, an operationunit 122, a Facsimile Control Unit (FCU) 126, a Universal Serial Bus(USB) 128, an Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)1394 interface 130, and an engine unit 132. In the image processingdevice 100, elements other than the operation unit 122 may be referredto as a main body unit.

The controller 102 includes a Central Processing Unit (CPU) 104, a NorthBridge (NB) 106, a system memory (MEM-P) 108, a South Bridge (SB) 114,an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) 116, a local memory(MEM-C) 118, an HDD 120, and a Network Interface Card (NIC) 121. Thesystem memory 108 includes a Read Only Memory (ROM) 110 and a RandomAccess Memory (RAM) 112.

The CPU 104 controls the whole image processing device 100 andconstitutes a chipset together with the north bridge 106, the systemmemory 108, and the south bridge 114. The CPU 104 is connected toanother device via this chipset. The north bridge 106 is a bridgeconnected among the CPU 104, the system memory 108, the south bridge114, and an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) bus 60. The north bridge 106includes a memory controller for controlling reading or writing on thesystem memory 108, a Peripheral Component Interface master (PCI) master,and an AGP target.

The AGP bus 60 is an interface provided to speed up a graphic process.The AGP bus 60 speeds up an image process by directly accessing thesystem memory 108 at high throughput.

The ROM 110 of the system memory 108 is a read-only memory that stores aprogram or data for an image processing device. The RAM 112 of thesystem memory 108 is a writable and readable memory which is used toload the program or data for an image processing device and is also usedto when a rendering process is performed by a printer. The south bridge114 is a bridge connected between the north bridge 106 and a peripheraldevice such as a PCI device. The south bridge 114 is connected to thenorth bridge 106 via a PCI bus. It is possible to connect a networkinterface (I/F) to the PCI bus.

The ASIC 116 is an Integrated Circuit (IC) for image processing having ahardware element for image processing. The ASIC 116 functions as abridge to connect the AGP bus 60, a PCI bus 70, the HDD 120, and thelocal memory 118. The ASIC 116 includes a PCI target and an AGP master,an arbiter (ARB) that functions as a core of the ASIC 116, a memorycontroller that controls the local memory 118, a plurality of DirectMemory Access Controllers (DMAC) that rotate image data using hardwarelogic, and a PCI unit that transfers data with the engine unit 132 viathe PCI bus 70. To the ASIC 116, the operation unit 122, the FacsimileControl Unit 126, the USB 128, the IEEE 1394 interface 130, and theengine unit 132 are connected via the PCI bus 70.

The local memory 118 is used as an image buffer and a code buffer forcopying. The HDD 120 stores image data, programs, font data, and forms.The HDD 120 also stores a license of an application executed in theimage processing device 100. The NIC 121 is an interface to connect to anetwork such as the LAN 50.

The operation unit 122 is directly connected to the ASIC 116 and is aninterface for a user such as an operator who operates the imageprocessing device 100. By operating the operation unit 122, it ispossible to input data, execute a job and display images, for example.

The Facsimile Control Unit 126 is connected to the PCI bus 70 andcontrols communication with an external device such as a FAX device or acopying device having a modem function in a public line. Each of the USB128 and the IEEE 1394 interface 130 is connected to the PCI bus 70 to beable to connect to a peripheral device. The engine unit 132 is connectedto the PCI bus 70 and may use a printer engine such as a black-and-whiteplotter, a color plotter with a single drum, a color plotter with fourdrums, a scanner, a fax unit, or the like. In addition, the engine unit132 may include an image processing unit for error diffusion or gammatransformation.

<Operation Unit 122>

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an appearance of the operation unit 122of the image processing device 100 according to the embodiments. Asshown in FIG. 3 , a field 1221 where the radio communication terminal200 is held and a display field 1222 are provided on the operation unit122. The user can start operating the image processing device 100 byholding the radio communication terminal 200 above the field 1221. Whenthe radio communication terminal 200 is held above the field 1221, astatus indicating that the process is in progress is displayed in thedisplay field 1222. In this case, from the radio communication terminal200 to the operation unit 122, functions to use such as copying andscanning set by the user in the radio communication terminal 200 andcontents set along with the functions are reported. In accordance withthis, the user is capable of using the image processing device 100without performing an operation on the display field 1222.

By contrast, if the user performs a normal operation such as the use ofthe image processing device 100 without using the radio communicationterminal 200, the user selects one of a plurality of application iconsdisplayed on a HOME screen displayed in the display field 1222. Inaccordance with this, the user is capable of starting the selected app.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of the operationunit 122 of the image processing device 100 according to theembodiments. The operation unit 122 may use a typical informationprocessing terminal and includes a CPU 152, a memory (MEM) 154, anon-volatile memory 160, an I/F 162, a first radio communication unit164, a second radio communication unit 166, a USB 168, a sensor 170, anda touch panel 172. The CPU 152, the memory 154, the non-volatile memory160, the I/F 162, the first radio communication unit 164, the secondradio communication unit 166, the USB 168, the sensor 170, and the touchpanel 172 are connected via a bus 80.

The CPU 152 controls the whole operations of the operation unit 122. Thememory 154 includes a ROM 156 and a RAM 158. The ROM 156 is a read-onlynon-volatile storage medium and stores a program such as firmware. TheRAM 158 is a volatile storage medium capable of reading and writinginformation at high speed and is used as a work area when the CPU 152processes information.

The non-volatile memory 160 is a non-volatile storage medium of NANDtype or the like capable of reading and writing information and storesan Operating System (OS), various control programs, applicationprograms, and the like. The I/F 162 connects between the bus 80, varioushardware, and a network such as the LAN 50.

The first radio communication unit 164 performs radio communication in afirst radio communication method, such as Bluetooth (registeredtrademark) 4.0, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), or short-range radiocommunication (Near Field Communication (NFC)), at lower speed comparedwith a second radio communication method.

The second radio communication unit 166 is connected to the wirelessaccess point 300 via the LAN 50. The second radio communication unit 166performs a process for radio communication in accordance with a standardof the second radio communication method such as a wireless LAN via thewireless access point 300, the radio communication being performed athigher speed compared with the first radio communication method.

The USB 168 can connect a peripheral device. The sensor 170 isimplemented with hardware such as an acceleration sensor. The touchpanel 172 is a visual user interface for a user to confirm a status ofthe image processing device 100. The touch panel 172 is also used whenan operation is performed.

It is possible to connect between the operation unit 122 and the ASIC116 via the I/F 162 or the USB 168.

Further, the first radio communication unit 164 and the second radiocommunication unit 166 may be included in the main body unit instead ofthe operation unit 122 or may be included in both the operation unit 122and the main body unit.

<Functional Configuration in Embodiments>

In the following, a functional configuration in the present embodimentsis described. FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of the operation unit122 constituting the image processing device 100.

The operation unit 122 includes a first transmitting and receiving unit402, a second transmitting and receiving unit 404, a device informationpublicizing packet creating unit 406, a connection information requestprocessing unit 408, a connection processing unit 410, a job processingunit 412, and a storing/reading processing unit 414. Each of these unitsserves as a function or a unit to be implemented when any one ofconstituent elements shown in FIG. 4 operates by an instruction from theCPU 152 in accordance with an operation unit program stored in thenon-volatile memory 160. Further, the operation unit 122 includes astorage unit 416 constructed with the non-volatile memory 160 shown inFIG. 4 .

(Table for Managing Device Information Publicizing Packets)

In the storage unit 416, a DB 418 for managing device informationpublicizing packets with a table for managing the device informationpublicizing packets as shown in Table 1, is constructed.

TABLE 1 Table for managing device information publicizing packets OutputReceived Device Operation power signal name mode level (W) strength (dB)aaa Dual mode XXX YYY

In the table for managing device information publicizing packets, adevice name, an operation mode, an output power level, and receivedsignal strength are associated. The device name is used for plug andplay of the image processing device 100. The operation mode indicates astandard supported by the first radio communication unit 164. Forexample, if the first radio communication unit 164 supports Bluetooth4.0, either a dual mode or a single mode is stored. The output powerlevel indicates output intensity of radio waves transmitted by the imageprocessing device 100. This output power level may have a fixed value ora variable value.

If the output power level has a fixed value, it is possible to estimatea distance between the image processing device 100 and the radiocommunication terminal 200 based on a received signal level of a deviceinformation publicizing packet in the image processing device 100.Further, if the output power level has a variable value, it is possibleto obtain a path loss based on the output power level and a receivedsignal level of a device information publicizing packet in the imageprocessing device 100, and to estimate a distance between the imageprocessing device 100 and the radio communication terminal 200. Thereceived signal strength is observed by an antenna of the radiocommunication terminal 200 when the radio communication terminal 200receives the device information publicizing packet.

(Table for Managing Connection Information)

In the storage unit 416, a DB 420 for managing connection informationwith a table for managing the connection information as shown in Table 2is constructed.

TABLE 2 Table for managing connection information Security Port SSIDmethod Password IP address number zzzzzz WPA2 wwwwww 192.168.10.10 αα

The table for managing connection information stores connectioninformation to be used if the second radio communication unit 166 andthe radio communication terminal 200 are connected in the second radiocommunication method. In the table for managing connection information,network information such as a Service Set Identifier (SSID), a securitymethod, and a password is associated with connection information such asaddress information including an IP address and a port number, forexample. The SSID includes identification information in a wireless LANand the security method is represented by a standard of encryption suchas WEP, WPA, WPA2, WPA2-TKIP, AES, or the like.

<Functional Units of Operation Unit 122>

In the following, each unit of the operation unit 122 is described indetail.

The first transmitting and receiving unit 402 of the operation unit 122is implemented with the first radio communication unit 164 and aninstruction from the CPU 152 shown in FIG. 4 . The first transmittingand receiving unit 402 transmits and receives various data (information)to and from the radio communication terminal 200 in accordance with astandard of the first radio communication method.

The second transmitting and receiving unit 404 of the operation unit 122is implemented with the second radio communication unit 166 and aninstruction from the CPU 152 shown in FIG. 4 . The second transmittingand receiving unit 404 performs a process to transmit and receivevarious data (information) to and from the radio communication terminal200 in accordance with a standard of the second radio communicationmethod.

The storing/reading processing unit 414 of the operation unit 122 isimplemented with an instruction from the CPU 152 and an operation unitprogram stored in the non-volatile memory 160 shown in FIG. 4 . Thestoring/reading processing unit 414 performs a process to store variousdata in the storage unit 416 and read various data stored in the storageunit 416.

The device information publicizing packet creating unit 406 of theoperation unit 122 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 152.The device information publicizing packet creating unit 406 creates adevice information publicizing packet including information stored inthe table for managing device information publicizing packets of the DB418 for managing device information publicizing packets. The deviceinformation publicizing packet is a packet, such as an advertisementpacket, to publicize presence of the image processing device 100 to theradio communication terminal 200. The device information publicizingpacket creating unit 406 transmits a created device informationpublicizing packet from the first transmitting and receiving unit 402.

The connection information request processing unit 408 of the operationunit 122 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 152. Aconnection information request transmitted by the radio communicationterminal 200 that has received the device information publicizing packetis input to the connection information request processing unit 408 fromthe first transmitting and receiving unit 402. When the connectioninformation request is input, the connection information requestprocessing unit 408 creates connection information including informationstored in the table for managing connection information of the DB 420for managing connection information in accordance with the connectioninformation request and transmits the connection information from thefirst transmitting and receiving unit 402.

The connection processing unit 410 of the operation unit 122 isimplemented with an instruction from the CPU 152. When a connectionrequest transmitted by the radio communication terminal 200 that hasreceived connection information is input from the second transmittingand receiving unit 404, the connection processing unit 410 performs aconnection process with the radio communication terminal 200 inaccordance with the connection request.

The job processing unit 412 of the operation unit 122 is implementedwith an instruction from the CPU 152. When a job requested by the radiocommunication terminal 200 is input from the second transmitting andreceiving unit 404, the job processing unit 412 processes the job.

<Radio Communication Terminal 200>

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of the radiocommunication terminal 200 according to the embodiments. The radiocommunication terminal 200 includes a CPU 202, a RAM 204, a ROM 206, anHDD 208, an I/F 210, a sensor 212, a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) 214,an operation unit 216, a first radio communication unit 218, and asecond radio communication unit 220. The CPU 202, the RAM 204, the ROM206, the HDD 208, the I/F 210, and the sensor 212 are connected via abus 90.

The CPU 202 controls the whole radio communication terminal 200. The ROM206 is a read-only non-volatile storage medium and stores a program suchas firmware. The RAM 204 is a volatile storage medium capable of readingand writing information at high speed and is used as a work area whenthe CPU 202 processes information. The HDD 208 is a non-volatile storagemedium capable of reading and writing information and stores an OS,various control programs, application programs, and the like.

The I/F 210 connects the bus 90 to various hardware and networks. Thesensor 212 is implemented with hardware such as an acceleration sensor.The LCD 214 is a visual user interface for a user to confirm a status ofthe radio communication terminal 200. The operation unit 216 is a userinterface, such as a keyboard or a mouse, for the user to inputinformation to the radio communication terminal 200. The LCD 214 and theoperation unit 216 may be constructed with a touch panel and thekeyboard may be implemented with software.

The first radio communication unit 218 performs radio communication inthe first radio communication method, such as Bluetooth 4.0 orshort-range radio communication, at lower speed compared with the secondradio communication method.

The second radio communication unit 220 performs radio communication inaccordance with the standard of the second radio communication methodsuch as a wireless LAN, the radio communication being performed athigher speed compared with the first radio communication method.

<Functional Configuration in Embodiments>

In the following, a functional configuration of the radio communicationterminal 200 according to the embodiments is described. FIG. 7 is afunctional block diagram of the radio communication terminal 200.

The radio communication terminal 200 includes a first transmitting andreceiving unit 252, a second transmitting and receiving unit 254, areceived signal strength measuring unit 256, a connection targetspecifying unit 258 a connection information obtaining unit 260, aconnection processing unit 262, a job requesting unit 264, and astoring/reading processing unit 266. Each of these units serves as afunction or a unit to be implemented when any one of constituentelements shown in FIG. 6 operates by an instruction from the CPU 202 inaccordance with a radio communication terminal program stored in the HDD208. Further, the radio communication terminal 200 includes a storageunit 268 constructed with the HDD 208 shown in FIG. 6 .

(Table for Managing Received Signal Strength)

In the storage unit 268, a DB 270 for managing received signal strengthwith a table for managing received signal strength as shown in Table 3is constructed.

TABLE 3 Table for managing received signal strength Device name Receivedsignal strength (dB) A −38 −42 −40 B −25 −24 −26 C −50 −60 −53 — — — —

In the table for managing received signal strength, a device name,received signal strength, and the like are associated. The device nameis used for plug and play of the image processing device 100, but may bechanged afterward. The received signal strength indicates receivedsignal strength of device information publicizing packets that have beentransmitted by the image processing device 100. In the table formanaging received signal strength, a queue for received signal strengthof device information publicizing packets is created for each devicename. Table 3 shows that the received signal strength of deviceinformation publicizing packets changes to −40 dB, −42 dB, and −38 dB,the packets being transmitted by the image processing device 100represented by “A” in the device name.

<Functional Units of Radio Communication Terminal 200>

In the following, each unit of the radio communication terminal 200 isdescribed in detail. The first transmitting and receiving unit 252 ofthe radio communication terminal 200 is implemented with the first radiocommunication unit 218 and an instruction from the CPU 202 shown in FIG.6 . The first transmitting and receiving unit 252 transmits and receivesvarious data (information) to and from the image processing device 100in accordance with the standard of the first radio communication method.

The second transmitting and receiving unit 254 of the radiocommunication terminal 200 is implemented with the second radiocommunication unit 220 and an instruction from the CPU 202 shown in FIG.6 . The second transmitting and receiving unit 254 transmits andreceives various data (information) to and from the image processingdevice 100 in accordance with the standard of the second radiocommunication method.

The storing/reading processing unit 266 of the radio communicationterminal 200 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 202 and theradio communication terminal program stored in the HDD 208 shown in FIG.6 . The storing/reading processing unit 266 performs a process to storevarious data in the storage unit 268 and read various data stored in thestorage unit 268.

The received signal strength measuring unit 256 of the radiocommunication terminal 200 is implemented with an instruction from theCPU 202 and the radio communication terminal program stored in the HDD208. The received signal strength measuring unit 256 measures receivedsignal strength of a device information publicizing packet in apredetermined cycle, the packet being received by the first transmittingand receiving unit 252, and inputs the received signal strength togetherwith a device name included in the device information publicizing packetto the storing/reading processing unit 266. The storing/readingprocessing unit 266 stores, in the DB 270 for managing received signalstrength of the storage unit 268, the device name and the receivedsignal strength input by the received signal strength measuring unit256. When the device name and the received signal strength are stored inthe DB 270 for managing received signal strength of the storage unit268, it is possible to store the received signal strength in accordancewith First In, First Out (FIFO) for each device name. In the following,a specific description is given with reference to the table for managingreceived signal strength shown in Table 3. For example, it is assumedthat received signal strength of device information publicizing packetsthat has been newly measured is to be stored, the packets beingtransmitted by an image processing device whose device name is “B.” Inthis case, the storing/reading processing unit 266 extracts and deletesthe oldest value for the device name “B” from the table for managingreceived signal strength and adds the received signal strength of deviceinformation publicizing packets as the latest value for the device name“B.”

The connection target specifying unit 258 of the radio communicationterminal 200 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 202 and theradio communication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. Theconnection target specifying unit 258 causes the storing/readingprocessing unit 266 to read the table for managing received signalstrength in the DB 270 for managing received signal strength of thestorage unit 268, and specifies an image processing device to connectbased on received signal strength stored in the table for managingreceived signal strength.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing a temporal change (1) of received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets received by the radiocommunication terminal 200 when a user holding the radio communicationterminal 200 approaches the image processing device 100. In FIG. 8 , anabscissa indicates time (t) and an ordinate indicates received signalstrength (RSSI) of device information publicizing packets.

If the radio communication terminal 200 is moved toward the imageprocessing device 100, received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets received by the radio communication terminal 200 islikely to become higher. Further, the received signal strength of deviceinformation publicizing packets received by the radio communicationterminal 200 is likely to become a constant value when a distancebetween the first radio communication unit 164 of the image processingdevice 100 and the first radio communication unit 218 of the radiocommunication terminal 200 becomes about several centimeters. Inaddition, the constant value may differ slightly depending on antennacharacteristics of the radio communication terminal 200.

The connection target specifying unit 258 determines, based on receivedsignal strength of device information publicizing packets stored in thetable for managing received signal strength, whether there is an imageprocessing device whose average value μ (dB) of the received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets exceeds a thresholdRs (dB). The connection target specifying unit 258 obtains the averagevalue μ (dB) from a suitable sampling number such as three deviceinformation publicizing packets and determines whether the average valueμ exceeds the threshold Rs. Further, the connection target specifyingunit 258 determines an image processing device whose average value μ ofreceived signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (dB) as being present just in front of theradio communication terminal 200. Further, the connection targetspecifying unit 258 specifies, as a connection target, the imageprocessing device determined as being present just in front of the radiocommunication terminal 200, and reports a device name of the imageprocessing device to the connection information obtaining unit 260.

Returning to FIG. 7 , the connection information obtaining unit 260 ofthe radio communication terminal 200 is implemented with an instructionfrom the CPU 202 and the radio communication terminal program stored inthe HDD 208. The connection information obtaining unit 260 creates,based on the device name reported by the connection target specifyingunit 258, a connection information request for an image processingdevice that corresponds to the device name as a destination, andtransmits the connection information request from the first transmittingand receiving unit 252. Further, if a job requested by the user is inputto the job requesting unit 264, the connection information obtainingunit 260 may create a connection information request for an imageprocessing device that corresponds to the device name as a destinationand transmit the connection information request from the firsttransmitting and receiving unit 252 in the same manner. If connectioninformation is input from the first transmitting and receiving unit 252as a reply to the connection information request, the connectioninformation obtaining unit 260 inputs the connection information to theconnection processing unit 262.

The connection processing unit 262 of the radio communication terminal200 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 202 and the radiocommunication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. Based on theconnection information input by the connection information obtainingunit 260, the connection processing unit 262 performs a process toswitch from the first radio communication method to the second radiocommunication method resulting from handover and connect between theimage processing device as the connection target and the secondtransmitting and receiving unit 254.

Further, in the radio communication terminal 200, a job requested by theuser may be input to the job requesting unit 264 and the radiocommunication terminal 200 may not transmit a connection informationrequest for an image processing device as a destination, the imageprocessing device corresponding to a device name input by the connectiontarget specifying unit 258. In this case, the connection processing unit262 may start a process to connect between the image processing deviceas a connection target and the second transmitting and receiving unit254 after the job requested by the user is input to the job requestingunit 264. By sharing a key related to encryption between the imageprocessing device 100 and the radio communication terminal 200, theimage processing device 100 encrypts connection information andtransmits the encrypted connection information and the radiocommunication terminal 200 decrypts the encrypted connectioninformation.

The job requesting unit 264 of the radio communication terminal 200 isimplemented with an instruction from the CPU 202 and the radiocommunication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. The job requestingunit 264 transmits the job requested by the user from the secondtransmitting and receiving unit 254 to the image processing device 100.

<Operation of Image Processing System>

FIG. 9 is a flowchart mainly showing an operation of the radiocommunication terminal 200 in an image processing system according tothe embodiments.

In step S902, the received signal strength measuring unit 256 of theradio communication terminal 200 measures received signal strength ofdevice information publicizing packets received by the firsttransmitting and receiving unit 252.

In step S904, the received signal strength measuring unit 256 of theradio communication terminal 200 inputs, in the storing/readingprocessing unit 266, a device name included in the device informationpublicizing packets and the received signal strength of the deviceinformation publicizing packets. In accordance with this, the receivedsignal strength measuring unit 256 stores, in the DB 270 for managingreceived signal strength of the storage unit 268, the device nameincluded in the device information publicizing packets and the receivedsignal strength of the device information publicizing packets.

In step S906, the connection target specifying unit 258 of the radiocommunication terminal 200 determines whether there is an imageprocessing device 100 whose average value μ of the received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets exceeds the thresholdRs. If there is no image processing device 100 whose average value μ ofthe received signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (NO in step S906), the process returns to stepS902.

If there is an image processing device 100 whose average value μ of thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (YES in step S906), in step S908, theconnection target specifying unit 258 of the radio communicationterminal 200 sets the image processing device 100 as a connectiontarget.

In step S910, the connection information obtaining unit 260 of the radiocommunication terminal 200 sends a connection information request to theimage processing device 100 set as the connection target. Whenconnection information (such as an SSID, a password, or an IP address)transmitted by the image processing device 100 set as the connectiontarget is obtained, the connection processing unit 262 of the radiocommunication terminal 200 uses the connection information to perform aconnection process with the image processing device 100.

In addition, the connection process in step S910 may be performed in aprocedure below.

For example, in step S910, the image processing device 100 transmits, tothe radio communication terminal 200, only information (such as an SSIDor a password) to connect to the same network to which the imageprocessing device 100 is connected as the connection information withouttransmitting information (such as an IP address) to identify the imageprocessing device 100.

The radio communication terminal 200 that has received the connectioninformation from the image processing device 100 transmits information(such as an IP address) to identify the radio communication terminal 200to the image processing device 100 as the connection target and uses theconnection information received from the image processing device 100 inorder to connect to the same network to which the image processingdevice 100 is connected.

The image processing device 100 that has received the information (suchas an IP address) to identify the radio communication terminal 200 fromthe radio communication terminals 200 uses the received information toconnect to the radio communication terminal 200.

As another example, the connection process in step S910 may be performedin a procedure below.

For example, in step S910, the image processing device 100 transmits, tothe radio communication terminal 200, only information (such as an SSIDor a password) to connect to the same network to which the imageprocessing device 100 is connected as the connection information withouttransmitting information (such as an IP address) to identify the imageprocessing device 100.

The radio communication terminal 200 that has received the connectioninformation from the image processing device 100 uses the connectioninformation received from the image processing device 100 to set up aserver on the same network to which the image processing device 100 isconnected. The radio communication terminal 200 reports informationabout an address (such as a URL) from which the radio communicationterminal 200 can receive information to the image processing device 100.

The image processing device 100 that has received the addressinformation (such as a URL) from which the radio communication terminal200 can receive information from the radio communication terminal 200uses the received address information to report information (such as anIP address) to identify the image processing device 100 to the radiocommunication terminal 200.

The radio communication terminal 200 that has received the information(such as an IP address) to identify the image processing device 100 fromthe image processing device 100 uses the received information to connectto the image processing device 100 and sends a request for an imageprocess such as printing.

In this manner, without receiving all the information to connect to theimage processing device 100 in the first radio communication method, theradio communication terminal 200 may receive a part of information toconnect to the image processing device 100 via the wireless access point300 and perform a connection process to perform an image process such asprinting.

After the connection process is performed in step S910, the jobrequesting unit 264 of the radio communication terminal 200 transmits ajob such as printing or scanning requested by the user to the connectedimage processing device 100 from the second transmitting and receivingunit 254.

In addition, in step S906 shown in FIG. 9 , the connection targetspecifying unit 258 collectively determines whether there is an imageprocessing device 100 whose average value μ of the received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets exceeds the thresholdRe. However, this determination may be performed for each imageprocessing device 100. For example, upon each reception of deviceinformation publicizing packets from each image processing device 100,the connection target specifying unit 258 may individually calculate anaverage value μ of the received signal strength from the imageprocessing device 100 and if the calculated average value μ exceeds thethreshold Rs, the connection target specifying unit 258 may perform theprocess in step S908.

In the embodiments, after the connection information is obtained in thefirst radio communication method, the radio communication terminal 200may not perform handover from the first radio communication method tothe second radio communication method and connect to the imageprocessing device 100 as a connection target in the first radiocommunication method. After the connection, the radio communicationterminal 200 may transmit a job requested by the user from the firsttransmitting and receiving unit 252 to the connected image processingdevice 100.

According to the above image processing system, the radio communicationterminal 200 measures the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets a plurality of times, the packets being transmittedby the image processing device 100, and if an average value of thereceived signal strength exceeds a certain threshold, the radiocommunication terminal 200 transmits a connection information request tothe image processing device 100. In accordance with this, it is possibleto send an instruction to execute a job to a desired image processingdevice 100 by only holding the radio communication terminal 200 abovethe image processing device 100 without operating the image processingdevice 100 or the radio communication terminal 200.

In the above example, the radio communication terminal 200 measures thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packets aplurality of times, and a connection information request is transmittedto an image processing device 100 whose average value of the receivedsignal strength exceeds a certain threshold. However, other than thisexample, the radio communication terminal 200 may transmit theconnection information request to an image processing device 100 whoseaverage value is within a certain range. Alternatively, the radiocommunication terminal 200 may perform predetermined arithmeticprocessing on the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets and specify an image processing device 100 totransmit the connection information request to based on a result of thearithmetic processing.

In the above example, the connection target specifying unit 258 of theradio communication terminal 200 determines whether there is an imageprocessing device 100 whose average value μ (dB) of the received signalstrength exceeds a certain threshold Rs (dB) based on the receivedsignal strength stored in the table for managing received signalstrength. The connection target specifying unit 258 may be caused todetermine, based on a standard deviation c in addition to the averagevalue p, whether there is an image processing device 100 whose averagevalue μ exceeds a certain threshold Rs and whose standard deviation c iswithin a specified range. In accordance with this, it is possible tospecify an image processing device 100 to connect to based on radioproperties with more improved accuracy.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 may be applied to an image processing system according to a firstembodiment and the image processing system includes a radiocommunication terminal 500 instead of the radio communication terminal200. A part of functions of the radio communication terminal in theimage processing system according to the first embodiment is differentfrom corresponding functions in the image processing system described in<Outline>.

<Functional Configuration in the First Embodiment>

In the following, a functional configuration is described. FIG. 10 is afunctional block diagram of the radio communication terminal 500. Theradio communication terminal 500 includes a first transmitting andreceiving unit 552, a second transmitting and receiving unit 554, areceived signal strength measuring unit 556, a connection targetspecifying unit 558, a connection information obtaining unit 560, aconnection processing unit 562, a job requesting unit 564, astoring/reading processing unit 566, and an inclination detecting unit572. Each of these units serves as a function or a unit to beimplemented when any one of constituent elements shown in FIG. 6operates by an instruction from the CPU 202 in accordance with the radiocommunication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. Further, the radiocommunication terminal 500 includes a storage unit 568 constructed withthe HDD 208 shown in FIG. 6 .

<Functional Units of Radio Communication Terminal 500>

In the following, each unit of the radio communication terminal 500 isdescribed. The first transmitting and receiving unit 552, the secondtransmitting and receiving unit 554, the received signal strengthmeasuring unit 556, the connection information obtaining unit 560, theconnection processing unit 562, the job requesting unit 564, and thestoring/reading processing unit 566 may employ functions ofcorresponding units of the radio communication terminal 200 shown inFIG. 7 .

The inclination detecting unit 572 of the radio communication terminal500 is implemented with the sensor 212 and an instruction from the CPU202 shown in FIG. 6 . The inclination detecting unit 572 detects aninclination of the radio communication terminal 500 such as an angle orthe like based on measurement information such as acceleration measuredby the sensor 212.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing acceleration measured in the radiocommunication terminal 500. If the sensor 212 employs an accelerationsensor, when an object is moved, the sensor 212 measures accelerationthereof. For example, a longitudinal direction of the LCD 214 of theradio communication terminal 500 is represented by a Y axis, right andleft directions of the LCD 214 are represented by an X axis, and adirection orthogonal to a plane defined by the X axis and the Y axis isrepresented by a Z axis. In this case, the radio communication terminal500 can obtain acceleration of the radio communication terminal 500 inthe right and left directions by detecting acceleration in an X axisdirection. Further, the radio communication terminal 500 can obtainacceleration of the radio communication terminal 500 in upward anddownward directions by detecting acceleration in a Y axis direction.Further, the radio communication terminal 500 can obtain acceleration ofthe radio communication terminal 500 in front surface and back surfacedirections by detecting acceleration in a Z axis direction. Theinclination detecting unit 572 determines an inclination of the radiocommunication terminal 500 such as an angle or the like by determiningwhether acceleration measured by the sensor 212 is within a certainrange.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the radio communication terminal 500 beinginclined by 45 degrees from a horizontal direction. In this case, theinclination detecting unit 572 detects that acceleration of the radiocommunication terminal 500 in the Y axis direction is sin 45°. If theinclination detecting unit 572 detects that the inclination of the radiocommunication terminal 500 is within a predetermined range, theinclination detecting unit 572 reports this information to theconnection target specifying unit 558. The predetermined range here isset in advance based on inclination of the operation unit 122 of theimage processing device 100. For example, when the user connects theradio communication terminal 500 to the image processing device 100, inmany cases, the user is assumed to hold the radio communication terminal500 in parallel with a display screen of the touch panel 172 in theoperation unit 122. When the radio communication terminal 500 is inparallel the display screen of the touch panel 172, both have the sameinclination. Accordingly, the inclination detecting unit 572 determineswhether the inclination of the radio communication terminal 500 iswithin the predetermined range from the inclination of the displayscreen of the touch panel 172.

In addition, the radio communication terminal 500 stores a value of theinclination of the operation unit 122 of the image processing device 100(inclination of the display screen of the touch panel 172) in thestorage unit 568 in advance, for example.

The connection target specifying unit 558 of the radio communicationterminal 500 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 202 and theradio communication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. Theconnection target specifying unit 558 causes the storing/readingprocessing unit 566 to read a table for managing received signalstrength in a DB 570 for managing received signal strength of thestorage unit 568. Further, the connection target specifying unit 558specifies an image processing device 100 to connect to based on thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packetsstored in the table for managing received signal strength and whetherthe inclination of the radio communication terminal 500 is within apredetermined range is detected. In this case, the predetermined rangeis set in advance depending on a shape of the image processing device100 and is stored in the storage unit 568, for example.

The following describes a case where a connection target is specifiedbased on whether an average value μ of the received signal strength ofdevice information publicizing packets exceeds a threshold Rs. Based ona standard deviation a in addition to the average value p, theconnection target may be specified based on whether the average value μexceeds the threshold Rs and whether the standard deviation a is withina specified range.

FIG. 13 is a graph showing a temporal change (2) of received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets received by the radiocommunication terminal 200. In FIG. 13 , an abscissa indicates time (t)and an ordinate indicates received signal strength (RSSI) of deviceinformation publicizing packets. As shown in FIG. 13 , depending onantenna characteristics of the radio communication terminal 200, thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packetstransmitted by the image processing device 100 may be accidentallymeasured as a value higher than a threshold Re. In this case, because anaverage value μ of the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets exceeds the threshold Rs, the radio communicationterminal 200 may transmit a connection information request to the imageprocessing device 100 and perform a connection process based onconnection information transmitted by the image processing device 100.Although this connection process does not cause a problem if theconnection process is performed for an image processing device intendedby the user, the connection process may cause a problem if the radiocommunication terminal 200 has been left to be connectable to anotherimage processing device 100, which is not intended by the user.

FIG. 14 is a graph showing a temporal change (3) of received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets received by the radiocommunication terminal 200. In FIG. 14 , an abscissa indicates time (t)and an ordinate indicates received signal strength (RSSI) of deviceinformation publicizing packets. FIG. 14 , the received signal strengthsof device information publicizing packets transmitted by two imageprocessing devices 100 are measured, the two image processing devices100 including a first image processing device 100 and a second imageprocessing device 100. The first image processing device 100 is in frontof the radio communication terminal 200 and is desired to be connectedthereto. However, the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets transmitted by the second image processing device100 may be accidentally measured as a value higher than a threshold Rs.In this case, because an average value μ (dB) of the received signalstrength exceeds the threshold Rs (dB), the radio communication terminal200 may transmit a connection information request to the second imageprocessing device 100 and perform a connection process based onconnection information transmitted by the second image processing device100.

In this manner, the radio communication terminal 500 according to thefirst embodiment specifies a connection target based on whether theinclination of the radio communication terminal 500 is within apredetermined range of the inclination of the display screen of theoperation unit 122 in the image processing device 100 in addition to thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packets. Inaccordance with this, the radio communication terminal 500 is capable ofreducing connection to an image processing device not intended by theuser.

<Operation of Image Processing System>

FIG. 15 is a flowchart mainly showing an operation of the radiocommunication terminal 500 in an image processing system according tothe first embodiment. Steps S1502-S1506 may use steps S902-S906 shown inFIG. 9 .

In step S1508, if there is an image processing device 100 whose averagevalue μ of the received signal strength exceeds the threshold Rs, theconnection target specifying unit 558 of the radio communicationterminal 500 determines whether the inclination detecting unit 572 hasdetected that the inclination of the radio communication terminal 500 iswithin a predetermined range. If the inclination of the radiocommunication terminal 500 is not detected to be within thepredetermined range (NO in step S1508), the process returns to stepS1502.

In step S1510, if the inclination detecting unit 572 has detected thatthe inclination of the radio communication terminal 500 is within thepredetermined range, the connection target specifying unit 558 of theradio communication terminal 500 sets the image processing device 100 asa connection target.

In step S1512, the connection information obtaining unit 560 of theradio communication terminal 500 sends a connection information requestto the image processing device 100 set as the connection target. Whenthe connection processing unit 562 of the radio communication terminal500 obtains the connection information transmitted by the imageprocessing device 100 set as the connection target, the connectionprocessing unit 562 uses the connection information to perform aconnection process with the image processing device 100.

After the connection process is performed in step S1512, the jobrequesting unit 564 of the radio communication terminal 500 transmits ajob such as printing or scanning from the second transmitting andreceiving unit 554 to the connected image processing device 100, the jobbeing requested by the user.

In the flowchart shown in FIG. 15 , after the process in step S1508 isperformed, the process in steps S1502-S1506 and S1510 may be performed.

In addition, in step S1506 shown in FIG. 15 , the connection targetspecifying unit 558 collectively determines whether there is an imageprocessing device 100 whose average value μ of the received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets exceeds the thresholdRs. However, this determination may be performed for each imageprocessing device 100. For example, upon each reception of deviceinformation publicizing packets from each image processing device 100,the connection target specifying unit 558 may individually calculate anaverage value μ of the received signal strength from the imageprocessing device 100 and if the calculated average value μ exceeds thethreshold Rs, the connection target specifying unit 558 may perform theprocess in step S1508.

According to the first embodiment, an image processing device 100 isspecified as a connection target of the radio communication terminal 500based on whether the inclination of the radio communication terminal 500is within a predetermined range of the inclination of the display screenof the operation unit 122 in the image processing device 100 in additionto the received signal strength of device information publicizingpackets. In accordance with this, it is possible for the radiocommunication terminal 500 to reduce erroneous connection to an imageprocessing device 100 which is not a desired image processing device100.

<Variation>

In an image processing system according to this variation, the deviceinformation publicizing packet creating unit 406 of the operation unit122 transmits a value of the inclination of the operation unit 122(inclination of the display screen of the touch panel 172) of its ownimage processing device 100 by including the value in device informationpublicizing packets.

For example, if an angle of the operation unit 122 is fixed in the imageprocessing device 100, the device information publicizing packetcreating unit 406 stores a value of the inclination of the operationunit 122 in the storage unit 416 in advance and transmits the storedvalue of the inclination of the operation unit 122 by including thestored value in device information publicizing packets.

Further, if the inclination of the operation unit 122 can be changed inthe image processing device 100, the image processing device 100measures a value of the inclination of the operation unit 122 based onacceleration measured by the sensor 170 in the same manner as in theradio communication terminal 500. Further, the device informationpublicizing packet creating unit 406 transmits the measured value of theinclination of the operation unit 122 by including the measured value indevice information publicizing packets.

In addition, when the image processing device 100 measures the value ofthe inclination of the operation unit 122, preferably, the value of theinclination of the operation unit 122 is measured at predetermined timeintervals, for example, in order to update the value of the inclinationof the operation unit 122 included in the device information publicizingpackets.

The connection target specifying unit 558 of the radio communicationterminal 500 specifies a connection target based on whether a differencebetween the inclination of the radio communication terminal 500 and theinclination of the operation unit 122 included in device informationpublicizing packets is within a predetermined range in addition to thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packets. Inaccordance with this, even if the inclination of the operation unit 122in the image processing device 100 is changed, it is possible for theradio communication terminal 500 to specify a desired image processingdevice 100. Further, even if the inclination such as an angle of theoperation unit 122 is different depending on image processing devices100, it is possible for the radio communication terminal 500 to specifya desired image processing device 100.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 1 may be applied to an image processing system according to asecond embodiment and the image processing system includes a radiocommunication terminal 600 instead of the radio communication terminal200. A part of functions of the radio communication terminal in theimage processing system according to the second embodiment is differentfrom corresponding functions in the image processing system described in<Outline>.

<Functional Configuration in the Second Embodiment>

In the following, a functional configuration is described. FIG. 16 is afunctional block diagram of the radio communication terminal 600. Theradio communication terminal 600 includes a first transmitting andreceiving unit 652, a second transmitting and receiving unit 654, areceived signal strength measuring unit 656, a connection targetspecifying unit 658, a connection information obtaining unit 660, aconnection processing unit 662, a job requesting unit 664, astoring/reading processing unit 666, a search screen display controllingunit 672, and a timer 674. Each of these units serves as a function or aunit to be implemented when any one of constituent elements shown inFIG. 6 operates by an instruction from the CPU 202 in accordance withthe radio communication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. Further,the radio communication terminal 600 includes a storage unit 668constructed with the HDD 208 shown in FIG. 6 .

<Functional Units of Radio Communication Terminal 600>

In the following, each unit of the radio communication terminal 600 isdescribed. The first transmitting and receiving unit 652, the secondtransmitting and receiving unit 654, the received signal strengthmeasuring unit 656, the connection information obtaining unit 660, theconnection processing unit 662, the job requesting unit 664 and thestoring/reading processing unit 666 may employ functions ofcorresponding units of the radio communication terminal 200.

The search screen display controlling unit 672 of the radiocommunication terminal 600 is implemented with the LCD 214 and aninstruction from the CPU 202 shown in FIG. 6 . The search screen displaycontrolling unit 672 performs control to display a search screen to showa search for an image processing device to the user of the radiocommunication terminal 600. This search screen also displays a startbutton to be selected to start searching for the image processing deviceand a cancellation button to be selected to cancel the search.

The timer 674 of the radio communication terminal 600 is implementedwith an instruction from the CPU 202 shown in FIG. 6 . The timer 674measures that a period of time set in advance such as 30 seconds haselapsed.

The connection target specifying unit 658 of the radio communicationterminal 600 is implemented with an instruction from the CPU 202 and theradio communication terminal program stored in the HDD 208. Theconnection target specifying unit 658 causes the search screen displaycontrolling unit 672 to display a screen to show searching for an imageprocessing device to the user of the radio communication terminal 600while a period of time set in advance by the timer 674 has elapsed.Further, the connection target specifying unit 658 causes thestoring/reading processing unit 666 to read a table for managingreceived signal strength in a DB 670 for managing received signalstrength of the storage unit 668. Further, the connection targetspecifying unit 658 specifies an image processing device 100 to connectto based on the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets stored in the table for managing received signalstrength and whether an inclination of the radio communication terminal600 is within a predetermined range is detected.

If the connection target specifying unit 658 cannot specify an imageprocessing device 100 to connect to even after the period of time set inadvance has elapsed, the connection target specifying unit 658 causesthe first transmitting and receiving unit 652 to cancel the searchingfor an image processing device 100 being performed by the firsttransmitting and receiving unit 652 and causes the search screen displaycontrolling unit 672 to close the search screen being displayed by thesearch screen display controlling unit 672. If the connection targetspecifying unit 658 cannot specify an image processing device 100 toconnect to even after the period of time set in advance has elapsed, theconnection target specifying unit 658 may cause the search screendisplay controlling unit 672 to display a message to cancel the searchsuch as “Device is not found.”

<Operation (1) of Image Processing System>

In the image processing system according to the second embodiment, anoperation of the radio communication terminal 600 is mainly describedwith reference to the search screen. FIG. 17 is a flowchart mainlyshowing the operation of the radio communication terminal 600 in theimage processing system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 18 is adiagram illustrating the search screen displayed on the radiocommunication terminal 600 according to the second embodiment. In thiscase, on the radio communication terminal 600, after a home screen isdisplayed, the search screen is displayed, and then a connection screenis displayed.

In step S1702, the search screen display controlling unit 672 of theradio communication terminal 600 displays the search screen on the LCD214. The connection target specifying unit 658 starts the timer 674. Forexample, when the user starts a connection app to connect the radiocommunication terminal 600 to the image processing device 100, the homescreen shown in FIG. 18 -(1) is displayed. In the home screen, jobproperties such as “DOCUMENT TYPE,” “RESOLUTION,” “FILE TYPE,” “READINGSIZE,” “DOCUMENT FACE” and the start button to start searching for animage processing device 100 may be displayed. When the user selects thestart button, the search screen shown in FIG. 18 -(2) is displayed and asearch for an image processing device 100 starts.

In step S1704, the connection target specifying unit 658 of the radiocommunication terminal 600 determines whether the cancellation button inthe search screen displayed by the search screen display controllingunit 672 is selected (pressed, for example). If the cancellation buttonin the search screen is selected (YES in step S1704), the processproceeds to step S1716 described later. As shown in FIG. 18 -(2), thecancellation button to be selected to cancel the search is displayed onthe search screen. The user can cancel the search by selecting thecancellation button.

If the connection target specifying unit 658 of the radio communicationterminal 600 determines that the cancellation button is not selected inthe search screen (NO in step S1704), the connection target specifyingunit 658 determines whether a search time has elapsed in the timer 674in step S1706.

If the connection target specifying unit 658 determines that the searchtime has not elapsed (NO in step S1706), in step S1708, the receivedsignal strength measuring unit 656 of the radio communication terminal600 measures the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets received by the first transmitting and receivingunit 652.

In step S1710, the connection target specifying unit 658 of the radiocommunication terminal 600 determines whether there is an imageprocessing device 100 whose average value μ of the received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets exceeds a thresholdRs. If there is no image processing device 100 whose average value μ ofthe received signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (NO in step S1710), the process returns to stepS1704.

If there is an image processing device 100 whose average value μ of thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (YES in step S1710), in step S1712, theconnection target specifying unit 658 of the radio communicationterminal 600 sets the image processing device 100 as a connectiontarget.

In step S1714, the connection information obtaining unit 660 of theradio communication terminal 600 sends a connection information requestto the image processing device 100 set as the connection destination.When the connection processing unit 662 of the radio communicationterminal 600 obtains the connection information transmitted by the imageprocessing device 100 set as the connection target, the connectionprocessing unit 662 uses the connection information to perform aconnection process with the image processing device 100. In this case,the search screen display controlling unit 672 changes the search screento the connection screen shown in FIG. 18 -(4). In this connectionscreen, the cancellation button to be selected to cancel the connectionis displayed. The user can cancel the connection by selecting thecancellation button.

In step S1716, the search screen display controlling unit 672 of theradio communication terminal 600 closes the search screen displayed onthe LCD 214.

If the search time has elapsed in step S1706, the search screen displaycontrolling unit 672 of the radio communication terminal 600 determineswhether an error message is set to be displayed in step S1718. If theerror message is not set to be displayed (NO in step S1718), the processproceeds to step S1716.

If the error message is set to be displayed (YES in step S1718), thesearch screen display controlling unit 672 of the radio communicationterminal 600 displays the error message in step S1720. In this case, thesearch screen display controlling unit 672 changes the search screen toan error display screen shown in FIG. 18 -(3). On this error displayscreen, the fact that a device is not found during the search time isdisplayed. Then the process proceeds to step S1716.

<Operation (2) of Image Processing System>

In the image processing system according to the second embodiment,another operation of the radio communication terminal 600 is mainlydescribed with reference to the search screen. FIG. 19 is a flowchartmainly showing the operation of the radio communication terminal 600 inthe image processing system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 20is a diagram illustrating the search screen displayed on the radiocommunication terminal 600 according to the second embodiment. In thiscase, on the radio communication terminal 600, after the home screen isdisplayed, the connection screen is displayed while the search screen isnot displayed.

In step S1902, the connection target specifying unit 658 of the radiocommunication terminal 600 determines whether the search time haselapsed in the timer 674. For example, when the user starts theconnection app to connect the radio communication terminal 600 to theimage processing device 100, the home screen shown in FIG. 20 -(1) isdisplayed. In the home screen, job properties such as “DOCUMENT TYPE,”“RESOLUTION,” “FILE TYPE,” “READING SIZE,” “DOCUMENT FACE” and the startbutton to start searching for an image processing device 100 may bedisplayed. When the user selects the start button, a search for an imageprocessing device 100 starts and a countdown of the search time set inadvance in the timer 674 starts. In the home screen, the cancellationbutton to be selected to cancel the search may be displayed. The usercan cancel the search by selecting the cancellation button.

If the connection target specifying unit 658 determines that the searchtime has not elapsed (NO in step S1902), in step S1904, the receivedsignal strength measuring unit 656 of the radio communication terminal600 measures the received signal strength of device informationpublicizing packets received by the first transmitting and receivingunit 652.

In step S1906, the connection target specifying unit 658 of the radiocommunication terminal 600 determines whether there is an imageprocessing device 100 whose average value μ of the received signalstrength of device information publicizing packets exceeds a thresholdRs. If there is no image processing device 100 whose average value μ ofthe received signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (NO in step S1906), the process returns to stepS1902.

If there is an image processing device 100 whose average value μ of thereceived signal strength of device information publicizing packetsexceeds the threshold Rs (YES in step S1906), in step S1908, theconnection target specifying unit 658 of the radio communicationterminal 600 sets the image processing device 100 as a connectiontarget.

In step S1910, the connection information obtaining unit 660 of theradio communication terminal 600 sends a connection information requestto the image processing device 100 set as the connection destination.When the connection processing unit 662 of the radio communicationterminal 600 obtains the connection information transmitted by the imageprocessing device 100 set as the connection target, the connectionprocessing unit 662 uses the connection information to perform aconnection process with the image processing device 100. In this case,the search screen display controlling unit 672 changes the search screento the connection screen shown in FIG. 20 -(3). In this connectionscreen, the cancellation button to be selected to cancel the connectionis displayed. The user can cancel the connection by selecting thecancellation button.

In step S1912, the search screen display controlling unit 672 of theradio communication terminal 600 closes the search screen displayed onthe LCD 214.

If the search time has elapsed in step S1902, the search screen displaycontrolling unit 672 of the radio communication terminal 600 determineswhether an error message is set to be displayed in step S1914. If theerror message is not set to be displayed (NO in step S1914), the processproceeds to step S1912.

If the error message is set to be displayed (YES in step S1914), thesearch screen display controlling unit 672 of the radio communicationterminal 600 displays the error message in step S1916. In this case, thesearch screen display controlling unit 672 changes the search screen tothe error display screen shown in FIG. 20 -(2). On this error displayscreen, the fact that a device is not found during the search time isdisplayed. On the error display screen, an “OK” button to be selectedwhen an error is confirmed is displayed. When the user selects this “OK”button, the process proceeds to step S1912.

According to the second embodiment, the radio communication terminalmeasures the received signal strength of device information publicizingpackets in response to an instruction by the user to search for an imageprocessing device 100. Accordingly, even if the radio communicationterminal is left to be connectable in proximity to an image processingdevice, the radio communication terminal does not measure the receivedsignal strength of device information publicizing packets in error. Inaccordance with this, it is possible to prevent a decline of a remainingbattery level of the radio communication terminal before the userbecomes aware of it.

It is possible to combine the above embodiments and the variation wherenecessary. Further, it is possible to apply the above embodiments andthe variation to a projection device such as a projector and anelectronic whiteboard in addition to an image forming device such as amultifunction peripheral having functions of printing, scanning,copying, and the like.

In the above embodiments, the image processing system is an example ofan image processing system. The radio communication terminal is anexample of an information processing apparatus. The received signalstrength measuring unit is an example of a radio wave strength measuringunit and an obtaining unit. The connection target specifying unit is anexample of a selection unit. The job requesting unit is an example of anoperation detecting unit. The connection processing unit is an exampleof a determining unit and a connection unit. The inclination detectingunit is an example of a measuring unit. And the timer is an example of acounting unit.

While the present invention is described with reference to the specificexamples and the variation, each of the examples and the variation ispresented as a mere example and those skilled in the art wouldunderstand various variations, modifications, alternatives,replacements, and the like. Although the devices in the examples of thepresent invention are described with reference to functional blockdiagrams for convenience sake of description, such devices may beimplemented with hardware, software, or a combination thereof. Thepresent invention is not limited to the above examples, but variousvariations, modifications, alternatives, replacements, and the like areincluded without departing from the scope of the present invention.

According to the described examples, in an information processing systemin which an information processing apparatus obtains connectioninformation via radio communication when connecting to an imageprocessing device and uses the connection information to connect to theimage processing device via the radio communication, even if a pluralityof image processing devices are disposed, it is possible to obtain theconnection information from a desired image processing device via theradio communication.

Further, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, andvarious variations and modifications may be made without departing fromthe scope of the present invention.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/052,072, filed Feb. 24, 2016, which claims the benefit of prioritiesof Japanese Priority Application No. 2015-036830 filed on Feb. 26, 2015and Japanese Priority Application No. 2016-014423 filed on Jan. 28,2016, the entire contents of each of which are hereby incorporated byreference.

What I claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:circuitry configured to receive radio waves from at least one of aplurality of devices via a network; detect a user operation indicatingto start a processing operation to be performed by any one of theplurality of devices; in response to detecting the user operation,determine, based on the radio waves received from the at least one ofthe plurality of devices, a device of the plurality of devices that isused for performing the processing operation; and request the determineddevice to start the processing operation.
 2. The information processingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is furtherconfigured to: receive the radio waves via a first wirelesscommunication system, which is Bluetooth, and acquire, via the firstwireless communication system, at least a part of connection informationfor requesting the processing operation to be performed by thedetermined device, via a second wireless communication system differentfrom the first wireless communication system.
 3. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry isfurther configured to: measure a passage of a predetermined time set inadvance, and stop the determination upon a failure to determine thedevice, even after the predetermined time has elapsed.
 4. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein thecircuitry is further configured to: measure a strength of the receivedradio waves; and determine the device according to the measured strengthof the received radio waves.
 5. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 4, wherein the circuitry is further configured tomeasure the strength of the received radio waves upon detecting the useroperation.
 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2,wherein after detecting the user operation, the circuitry is furtherconfigured to connect to the device via the second wirelesscommunication system, based on the acquired connection information. 7.The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein theuser operation indicating to start the processing operation to beperformed by any one of the plurality of devices is pressing of a scanstart button; and the circuitry is further configured to determine,after detecting the user operation, the device to execute the processingoperation.
 8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the device of the plurality of devices is one of an imageforming apparatus, a projection device, and an electronic whiteboard. 9.The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein thecircuitry is further configured to detect the user operation indicatingto start the processing operation, which is one of printing, scanning,and copying.
 10. The information processing apparatus according to claim1, wherein the information processing apparatus is one of a smart phoneand a table terminal.
 11. An information processing system, comprising:a plurality of devices; and an information processing apparatusconnectable to at least one of the plurality of devices over a network,the information processing apparatus including circuitry configured toreceive radio waves from at least one of the plurality of devices viathe network; detect a user operation indicating to start a processingoperation to be performed by any one of the plurality of devices; inresponse to detecting the user operation, determine, based on the radiowaves received from the at least one of the plurality of devices, adevice of the plurality of devices that is used for performing theprocessing operation; and request the determined device to start theprocessing operation, the device of the plurality of devices includescircuitry configured to process the processing operation requested bythe information processing apparatus.
 12. An information processingmethod, comprising: receiving radio waves from at least one of aplurality of devices via a network; detecting a user operationindicating to start a processing operation to be performed by any one ofthe plurality of devices; in response to detecting the user operation,determining, based on the radio waves received from the at least one ofthe plurality of devices, a device of the plurality of devices that isused for performing the processing operation; and requesting thedetermined device to start the processing operation.
 13. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the device is adevice that is to start the processing operation.
 14. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the device of theplurality of devices is a projection device.
 15. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the device of theplurality of devices is an electronic whiteboard.
 16. The informationprocessing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in response to theuser operation, start searching for a device of the plurality of devicesand measure a strength of the radio waves.
 17. The informationprocessing method according to claim 12, further comprising: receivingthe radio waves via a first wireless communication system, which isBluetooth, and acquiring, via the first wireless communication system,at least a part of connection information for requesting the processingoperation to be performed by the determined device, via a secondwireless communication system different from the first wirelesscommunication system.
 18. The information processing method according toclaim 12, further comprising: measuring a passage of a predeterminedtime set in advance, and stopping the determination upon a failure todetermine the device, even after the predetermined time has elapsed. 19.The information processing method according to claim 12, furthercomprising: measuring a strength of the received radio waves; anddetermining the device according to the measured strength of thereceived radio waves.
 20. The information processing method according toclaim 19, further comprising: measuring the strength of the receivedradio waves upon detecting the user operation.
 21. The informationprocessing method according to claim 17, wherein after detecting theuser operation, connecting to the device via the second wirelesscommunication system, based on the acquired connection information. 22.The information processing method according to claim 12, wherein theuser operation indicating to start the processing operation to beperformed by any one of the plurality of devices is pressing of a scanstart button; and determining, after detecting the user operation, thedevice to execute the processing operation.
 23. The informationprocessing method according to claim 12, wherein the device of theplurality of devices is one of an image forming apparatus, a projectiondevice, and an electronic whiteboard.
 24. The information processingmethod according to claim 12, further comprising: detecting the useroperation indicating to start the processing operation, which is one ofprinting, scanning, and copying.
 25. The information processing methodaccording to claim 12, wherein the device is a device that is to startthe processing operation.
 26. The information processing methodaccording to claim 12, wherein the device of the plurality of devices isa projection device.
 27. The information processing method according toclaim 12, wherein the device of the plurality of devices is anelectronic whiteboard.
 28. The information processing method accordingto claim 12, wherein in response to the user operation, start searchingfor a device of the plurality of devices and measuring a strength of theradio waves.
 29. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring executable instructions which, when executed by circuitry, causethe circuitry to perform a method comprising: receiving radio waves fromat least one of a plurality of devices via a network; detecting a useroperation indicating to start a processing operation to be performed byany one of the plurality of devices; in response to detecting the useroperation, determining, based on the radio waves received from the atleast one of the plurality of devices, a device of the plurality ofdevices that is used for performing the processing operation; andrequesting the determined device to start the processing operation.